Golf: Penrose claims strokeplay title

By BOB PEARCE

Cambridge left-hander Guy Penrose gave his new career in Australia a big boost by winning the Auckland strokeplay golf championship at Middlemore yesterday.

The tall 19-year-old finished with a 54-hole total of 216, level par, to win by two shots from Glyn Delany of Nelson.

Third equal a further shot back were another Waikato left-hander, Scott Pickett (Morrinsville), and George Kinghorn (Tauranga).

The event was reduced to 54 holes when the second round on Saturday had to be abandoned because of torrential rain and thunder.

Penrose leaves on September 13 to take up a three-year apprenticeship at the Murray Downs Club, north of Melbourne.

His form in the past few weeks suggests that a professional playing career is a reasonable option.

He blazed on to the New Zealand golf scene as a 15-year-old and was third in the British junior open at that age.

But for much of the past two years he has been laid low by glandular fever and came back to serious golf only three months ago.

At Middlemore, on what turned out to be a perfect afternoon for golf, he shot a two-under-par 70 in his final round, displaying rare authority with his irons to some of the difficult par fours.

Typical was his finish where he drilled a six-iron to 10 feet and sank the putt for a birdie to put the issue beyond doubt.

Penrose began the final round two shots adrift of Pickett, who had been the first-round leader with a 71, which he followed with a 73.

With nine holes to play, Penrose, thanks to three birdies, led Delany by one with Pickett another shot back.

On the short par-four 11th, Penrose struck trouble.

He was in a hazard from the tee and took three more to reach the green. A six put him one behind Delany.

When Delany birdied the next the margin was two, but the Nelson man had a double-bogey on the 14th and Penrose regained the lead when he birdied the next after a sweet six-iron second.

From there he was never headed and showed a remarkably serene temperament as he cruised through the final holes.

Clarke Osborne (The Grange) was the best of the Aucklanders in fifth place on 221, one ahead of Geoff Sisson (Pakuranga), whose final round was spoiled by a triple-bogey on the 18th.

After the tournament, the Auckland selectors named the following team to play Wellington at Taupo next weekend: Chris Johns (Auckland); Blair Dibley, Mark Pirihi (Akarana); Geoff Sisson (Pakuranga); Clarke Osborne, Logan Holzer, Darren Steedman (The Grange); Arron Bartrum, Franz Schwanner (Manukau); Mike Leitch (Maungakiekie).